Alistair Darling has claimed the head of the pro-independence campaign group
is utterly subservient to Alex Salmond and had only been given the job to
make “seating arrangements” at debates.

The former Chancellor, who is leading the opposing pro-UK campaign, said Blair Jenkins will need to be replaced as chief executive of Yes Scotland if he continues to refuse to answer key policy questions for the next two years.

Mr Darling said set-piece debates will take place between himself and Mr Salmond and he will not deal with Mr Jenkins “unless we are discussing the seating arrangement or something technical like that.”

The appointment of Mr Jenkins, a former BBC Scotland head of news, as the chief executive of Yes Scotland was supposed to demonstrate the campaign had wider support across society than just the SNP.

But Mr Darling insisted the distinction was false because the campaign “only exists” thanks to the First Minister and senior appointees will have been approved by him.

The Edinburgh South West MP also used his interview with Holyrood magazine to argue that Mr Salmond’s psychological well-being relies on the premise that “Scotland has somehow been cheated out of something”.

However, he saved his most outspoken comments for his opposite number, Mr Jenkins, who infamously refused at the Yes Scotland launch to provide any details about separation because it was focused on winning over “hearts and minds”.

Mr Darling said: “I am pretty clear that on the other side, that there is only one person that really calls the shots and the Yes campaign only exists because Alex Salmond said it would exist.

“I don’t think anyone would be on it if he hadn’t said they could so I don’t make the distinction that some people do. The only thing I do notice is that Blair Jenkins refuses to answer any policy questions and you won’t get through a campaign by doing that.”

He suggested Mr Jenkins views his role as the campaign’s administrative chief, before concluding: “Unless we are discussing the seating arrangement or something technical like that, he is going to say nothing.”

But the former Chancellor said the referendum debate is about “policies par excellence”, encompassing a separate Scotland's currency and status in the EU, meaning Mr Jenkins’ view this is “someone else’s department” is untenable.

“I think they will need to rethink that or else at some point the SNP will put someone else up who can,” Mr Darling said.

He was also scathing about the Yes Scotland launch in May, which featured a series of left-wing diatribes about increasing taxes on the wealthy, saying it resembled something produced by a 1970s agitprop theatre group.

Similarly, he criticised Mr Salmond’s refrain that the only way to escape George Osborne’s economic policies is to vote for separation.

Mr Darling said the First Minister’s latest policy of a currency union between Scotland and the remainder of the UK would mean agreeing to strict tax and spending controls set by Westminster.

A Yes Scotland spokesman said they are focused on a positive campaign that will deliver a vote for independence, only after which will political parties set out their policies on issues such as defence and the currency.